Page 68 of Biker's Tribute: Property of Bear

What happens when she’s gone? When she starts a new therapy office? When this is all over?She’ll leave.

We share restlessness for action. Darragh knows the city best, so we lead the ride together. Magnum and Reed match our pace, with Reed lagging slightly behind in case we attract law enforcement. Darragh assures me that they have "their people" in various pockets of law enforcement throughout the city, but the less attention we attract, the better for all of us.

I haven't done a job like this since I was in Chicago with Wyatt, working on that money situation with dad.

Wyatt wanted peace, but the peace we claw out never seems to last. Dad wanted us ready for the realities of our life. If you exist outside of normal American society-- the endless cubicle grind-- you have to fight for every ounce of freedom that you have.

We park the bikes one block down, concealed behind a large Chevy Suburban with three parking tickets slid beneath the windshield wipers. That many tickets will get the car towed soon, but Darragh promises there won't be any cops working this neighborhood at the time we show up.

Reed Hollingsworth brought a fucking arsenal for this job that I doubt we'll find necessary. Hunting knives, guns, and thick rope. His collection impresses Darragh Murray, but the kid scares me. His first big job and he shows up with all that? Crazy shit.

Magnum slows us down to smoke a cigarette and Darragh, as Boston as they come, takes one of Magnum's cigarettes for himself. Reed doesn't smoke, but I indulge myself. I never liked bloody work. It's a part of life. Sometimes, a man has to kill, he has to fight and hurt other people but... I never had Wyatt's thirst for blood. Dad knew it from the time I was a kid and kept me away from leading the club.

I'd much rather throw fists and fight like a man than use firearms, but the truth is, I'd prefer not having to do either. Fighting with fists at least puts you on even footing -- and makes it less likely that you'll put yourself in a situation to get hurt or killed. But this is necessary. Why did they have YANCEY written on a piece of paper? How do these people know Amanda?

And most importantly... how did they get a Midnight SS cut?

Magnum and Reed approach the address from another street. Magnum has a good sense of direction and a mental map of nearly every major city in America thanks to his extensive real estate holdings. He's also responsible for keeping Reed's darker tendencies at bay.

I let Darragh lead the way. He needs my muscle to get the door down faster, though as a current welterweight, he has the size to get a door off its hinges if he really wanted to.

"We'll get our answers," he says. "And I'm sorry for dragging you into any of this trouble if it's our problem, not yours."

"Looks like we share problems."

Darragh chuckles. "I thought this would be a business alliance and it's... turned into much more. You boys are good people. Rough around the edges but that makes it easier."

I grunt in response. We're there.

91 Melvin Street.

"Two of them inside. They'll hear you get the door, so we'll have to be quick. I expect they'll be armed."

"You're good with a gun. Or you wouldn't be here."

The Boston mobsters run a tight ship.

"True," Darragh says, his eyes gleaming as he gears up for a fight.

"Ready to do this?"

I haven't worked a job without my brother in a long time. I nod. I'm as ready as I'll ever be to do something like this. The quicker we get through this darkness, the better. Darragh holds tightly to his pistol as we rush the door. I slowly run my hands over the wood, finding the weak points.

Even metal doors can get ripped off their hinges.

We're so quiet that all I can hear is my breath and Darragh's. We look at each other and nod before I grip the door in the right places and let out a loud growl to pump adrenaline through me as I rip the door off its hinges.

Pure chaos ensues once we get inside. I see a black flash and then hear Darragh's gun go off, piercing through the silencer to create a quieter, but not totally silent explosion. Once he pops the first guy, the second raises his hands in defeat.

Magnum and Reed hear the signal and act, breaking through the back windows and entering the safe house.

"Move one muscle and we'll paint the walls," Darragh threatens him, pointing his gun at the man's head and then pointing to a chair covered in a black jacket and a towel.

The man doesn't say a word.

"Sit," Reed says in a thick, West Texas accent. "We have questions."

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